Heartbreaking visuals: Whales found washed ashore in Japan’s Chiba amid Tsunami waves | VIDEO

A heartbreaking visual circulating on social media shows whales washed ashore in Tateyama City, Chiba Prefecture, Japan, as the country reported potential tsunami waves following an 8.8-magnitude earthquake off Russia’s Pacific coast on Tuesday.

The scene was captured on video and aired live on NHK, a Japanese television.

Whales may become stranded during tsunamis due to the sudden and extreme changes in coastal water levels and currents. While tsunami waves generally pass unnoticed in deep ocean waters, their impact intensifies as they approach the shore.

The initial strong pullback of water before the wave hits can disorient and trap whales in shallow areas, leaving them temporarily stranded near the beach.

White waves washed up to the shoreline on Japan's Hokkaido in the north and Ibaraki and Chiba, just east of Tokyo, in footage aired on Japan's NHK public television.

A tsunami of 50 centimeters (1.6 feet) was detected at the Ishinomaki port in northern Japan, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.

That was the highest measurement so far among several locations around northern Japan. But higher waves were still arriving, said Shiji Kiyomoto, an earthquake and tsunami response official at JMA.

The tsunami alert disrupted transportation in Japan. Ferries connecting Hokkaido and Aomori on the northern tip of Japan’s Honshu island were suspended, as well as those connecting Tokyo and nearby islands, and some local train operations were suspended or delayed, according to operators. Sendai airport temporarily closed its runway.

Japan’s Fire and Disaster Management Agency said so far no injuries or damages have been reported.

The agency, in response to the tsunami alert, issued an evacuation advisory to more than 900,000 residents in 133 municipalities along Japan’s Pacific coast, from Hokkaido to Okinawa.

Japanese nuclear power plants reported no abnormalities. Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings, which operates the tsunami-hit Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, said about 4,000 workers are taking shelter on higher ground at the plant complex while monitoring remotely to ensure plant safety.